Page 4698 - Week 13 - Tuesday, 10 November 2009
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A team of specialised teachers build the capacity of the schools, as well as the skills of the teachers, in order to support the individual learning plans for students with disabilities in mainstream classes. A cross-disciplinary team provides technical support, professional learning, specialised advice and assistance to address pedagogy and the needs of students with disabilities in schools. The disability support officers assist students in making successful connections in developing greater independence within the community, as outlined in their individual learning plans.
Already a number of departmental interagency groups and committees operate to coordinate activities and programs, generally targeting specific cohorts of young people. The ACT youth guarantee will establish networks and coordinating arrangements to allow synergies to be established across the entire spectrum of youth education and support programs.
The SPICE program, as I mentioned previously, provides work experience and home tutoring to young people aged 12 to 15 who are at risk of not completing year 10. The 2008-09 budget provided over $800,000 to enable Volunteering ACT to continue to deliver this important work.
This government has a proven record of support for young people and provides them with the opportunity to develop their skills for future employment prospects. Labor has always been the party that prioritises education, the party which takes job creation seriously and the party which is economically responsible. No-one needs to tell this government that we owe it to our young people to deliver them excellent education and training opportunities. This is the key to their future and I am confident that young people will take up these opportunities to improve their life chances.
From the national data released last week, we know that, if we provide the means, young people in the ACT are capable of taking these opportunities to learn. An investment in the education of young Canberrans is an investment in their quality of life and provides the key to a productive and happy life for the individual and will provide them with the economic, social and lifestyle benefits for themselves and, of course, has great flow-on benefits to the whole community. As I said at the outset, every young person in our community is valued and deserves to be given every opportunity for a happy and productive life, and that is why I support this bill.
MS BURCH (Brindabella—Minister for Disability, Housing and Community Services, Minister for Ageing, Minister for Multicultural Affairs and Minister for Women) (11.06): Today is a significant event for the ACT. The introduction of the Education (Participation) Amendment Bill 2009 into the ACT Legislative Assembly is an important component of implementing our response to the youth compact and the youth attainment and transitions national partnership. These reforms occur at a unique juncture, enabling a set of expectations to be established in our community regarding young people’s experience in schooling and their transitions into further education, training and work. The challenge is for our schools, our vocational education providers and our universities to transform universal opportunity into universal outcomes for each and every student.
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